Members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and ‘Los Chapitos’ faction of the notorious Sinaloa Cartel are said to have formed an alliance which could prove deadly

Fears are growing over a new ‘super cartel‘ as two of the most violent gangs in Mexico are believed to have formed an alliance – Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and the ‘Los Chapitos’ faction of the Sinaloa Cartel.

A video spread on social media showing several armed men with two others appearing to have been captured by the drug cartels. There is no information as to the location the image was taken, however, those who took the video have claimed it shows an alleged alliance between CJNG and ‘La Chapiza’, a group of armed men who work for the Sinaloa Cartel faction. One of those in the video is heard saying: “The rumours are true, the alliance between the New Generation Cartel and La Chapiza is confirmed.”

In the video they also refer to Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, who is known as El Mencho, and to one of Joaquín Guzmán Loera’s sons who have been identified as leaders of the notorious gangs. As the video draws to a close, the men fire their weapons into the air in celebration.

The video appeared online shortly after the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) published its 2025 National Drug Threat Assessment, which included mention on a potential alliance between the notorious gangs. The report stated: “A strategic alliance between the CJNG and Los Chapitos has the potential to expand these groups’ territories, resources, firepower, and access to corrupt officials, which could result in a significant shift in the criminal balance of power in Mexico and could serve to increase northbound drug flow and southbound weapons trafficking at the US-Mexico border.”

It is believed that working together, the two groups are hoping to strengthen their operations and to provide a stronger front against common rivals, particularly the faction led by Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada – a former top leader of the Sinaloa Cartel who was arrested in July 2024. The DEA report explained: “On July 25, 2026, the United States arrested Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada-Garcia, a co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, and Joaquín Guzmán-López, a founding member of the Sinaloa Cartel’s Los Chapitos faction, in New Mexico, just outside of El Paso, Texas.

“This arrest brought into custody key cartel figures who eluded both US and Mexican law enforcement for years and are considered tow of the principal leaders responsible for the production, trafficking, and distribution of fentanyl throughout the United States. The arrest escalated tensions and infighting between the main two factions of the Sinaloa Cartel (Los Mayos and Los Chapitos), which continues today.”

Negotiations between CJNG and Los Chapitos are said to have began last year, as representatives met in Guadalajara and Nayarit. It has been reported that as part of the agreement to work together, Jesus Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, one of the Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán’s sons, would be handed over to the CJNG as a guarantee. The DEA report added: “According to Mexican news sources, CJNG could capitalise on the conflict between the Los Mayos and Los Chapitos factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, essentially by choosing sides in favour of their former rivals, Los Chapitos, against Los Mayos.”

The potential alliance between the notoriously violent gangs has also raised concerns in Mexico, with experts warning the cartel collaboration could intensify violence in key regions and complicate authorities’ efforts to fight drug trafficking. The introductory summary to the DEA’s 2025 report states: “Mexican cartels’ production, trafficking, and distribution of powerful illicit synthetic drugs, chiefly fentanyl and methamphetamine, represent a dire threat to public health, the rule of law, and national security in the United States.

“The Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation Cartels (CJNG), together with their procurement, distribution, and financial support networks stretching across Latin America, China, and other key global nodes, remain the dominant threats for the trafficking of these and other drugs into the United States.”

The report added that in the 12 months to October 2024, 84,076 American died from a drug overdose according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “underscoring the devastating effect these cartels have on our country.” The Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel, along wiht six other criminal organisations, have been designated as foreign terrorist organisations by the United States.

In his introduction to the 2025 DEA report, Acting Administrator Robert Murphy wrote that these groups are “the primary groups oroducing the illicit synthetic drugs driving US drug poisoning deaths and trafficking these drugs into the United States.” He wrote: “The cartels are not only fuelling the drug poisoning deaths in the United States, but also committing egregious acts of violence, threatening the security and stability of our partners across the Western Hemisphere.”

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